Night it all came together: 50th anniversary of Wilt’s 100-point game

On March 2, 1962, everything came together in Hershey, Pa., to allow NBA great Wilt Chamberlain to accomplish one of the most amazing records in sports.

He put up 100 points in the Philadelphia Warriors’ 169-147 victory over the New York Knicks. He actually had a chance at 102, but the Warriors couldn’t get the rebound of a miss.

It’s just as well — 100 sounds so much more regal than 102 would have.

Express-News staff writer Douglas Pils takes a look at some of the numbers the “Big Dipper” and others put up that night and in their careers. Only 4,124 were there, and it wasn’t televised, but the players heard from many over the years who claimed to be there:

WILT’S BIG NUMBERS

28 – Out of 32 free throws for an 87.5 percent night from the stripe for a guy who made only 51.1 percent for his career.

31 – Points out of his team’s 44 scored in the fourth quarter to set an individual record for points in a quarter that stood until April 9, 1978, when it was broken twice. The Nuggets’ David Thompson had 32 of his 73 points in the first quarter against the Pistons, but it stood for a few hours before the Spurs’ George Gervin had 33 of his 63 points in the second quarter against the Jazz. Gervin and Thompson were locked a battle for the scoring title that Gervin won. Carmelo Anthony tied the mark with 33 points on Dec. 10, 2008.

50.4 – Average scoring the season of his 100-point game. Like his 100-point game, 50.4 is a number that won’t be challenged. Michael Jordan’s 37.4 in 1988-89 is the closest anyone has come.

219 – Three-game total for the games surrounding his 100-point night. He had 61 points in a 128-119 win over the Chicago Packers on Feb. 28 and 58 in a 129-128 win over the Knicks on March 4.

THE WARRIORS

The night didn’t catapult Philadelphia to bigger things. They lost Game 7 of the Eastern Division finals 109-107 to the Celtics on a Sam Jones jumper with two seconds remaining.

Al Attles: Second year out of North Carolina A&T, he spent all 11 years with Warriors in Philadelphia and San Francisco. He was player-coach his final two seasons and then coached them for 12 more years, winning the NBA title in 1975.

Paul Arizin: A Hall of Famer, he’s a Philly high school guy who went to Villanova. He played all 10 years with the Warriors, who moved to San Francisco without him for the 1962-63 season. He averaged 21.9 points in 1961-62 to finish with a 22.8 career average. Led league in scoring twice (1951-52, 1956-57).

Tom Gola: He missed the game with strained back and was home in Philadelphia listening on the radio and drinking beer. He held Philadelphia’s city high school career scoring record before Chamberlain broke it. He led La Salle to the 1954 NCAA title, and his absence on March 2, 1962, likely aided in the 100-point night. Also a Hall of Famer, Gola averaged 13.7 points and 9.8 rebounds in 60 games that season.

Tom Meschery: A rookie out of Saint Mary’s College of California, he coached one season at Carolina in the ABA.

Guy Rodgers: The fourth Philly guy had 20 assists this night. He was a four-time All-Star who led the league in assists twice (1962-63 with Warriors, 1966-67 with Bulls). Ranks 16th in career NBA assists (6,917).

THE KNICKS

They were about to finish 29-51 in Eddie Donovan’s first of a forgettable 3??1/2 seasons (84-194).

Al Butler: Rookie guard started year as Celtics reserve, but averaged 14.7 points in final 54 games with the Knicks. He played four seasons, averaging 9.8 points.

Johnny Green: Forward-center was in third season of 14-year career. Four-time All-Star averaged 11.6 points and 8.6 rebounds.

Richie Guerin: Sixth-year guard and six-time All-Star was sixth in the NBA at 29.5 points per game, his best season among 13 in the league. Had career marks of 17.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists.

Darrall Imhoff: The third overall pick out of California in 1960 behind Oscar Robertson and Jerry West, he played 12 seasons with six teams. Lost in three NBA Finals (’65, ’66, ’68) with the Lakers.

Willie Naulls: Forward-center was in middle of 11-year career with four teams. Averaged 15.8 points and 9.1 rebounds, ending career with three NBA titles with the Celtics (’64, ’65, ’66).

ELSEWHERE THAT DAY

In 1962, the NBA barely drew notice nationwide, as college basketball was still the major game on the court. There was no video of Chamberlain’s feat.

– Cliff Hagan had 43 points and 10 rebounds and Bob Pettit had 33 points and 20 rebounds to lead the St. Louis Hawks to a 138-120 victory over the Boston Celtics. While Chamberlain went for 100, his chief adversary, Bill Russell, had 20 points and 13 rebounds in the loss.

– In Cincinnati, Oscar Robertson tore up the Detroit Pistons with 41 points and 15 rebounds in a 120-112 comeback victory for the Royals, who trailed 69-58 at halftime. Robertson averaged a triple-double that season, with 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds and 11.4 assists, something else no one has done since.

– Attendance at one of the other games that night wasn’t much better than the 4,124 in attendance at Hershey, Pa., for Wilt’s record. Only 5,409 saw Robertson’s performance, while 10,310 showed up in St. Louis for the Hawks’ win over the Celtics.

S.A. COVERAGE

The Spurs were 11 years away from moving to San Antonio, so pro basketball coverage was limited in the Express and the Light newspapers.

The big headlines that day were:

South San loses to Waxahachie: The Bobcats’ defense of the Class 3A state title ended in the state semifinals with a 59-53 loss.

Chamberlain’s feat garnered small headlines, “Chamberlain scrambles record book” in the Light and “Chamberlain scores 100” in the Express. Each paper carried four paragraphs about the game.

The Express ran a long Associated Press story recapping the night and Chamberlain’s impact on the game on March 4. The Light ran nothing that day, although it had a long story about “lithe Fox Tech track star Richard Romo” and his quest to repeat his Class 4A state mile title, extend a victory streak that stood at 16 and chase the national high school record of 4:11.